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| How to Hypnotize a Chicken |
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| Anyone who's spent a lot of time on a farm with chickens is probably familiar with this trick. |
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| Those who've never heard of this will be amazed to see a chicken lie perfectly still after these instructions are followed. |
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| Biologists think that fear causes this 'hypnosis,' which may be an attempt to 'play dead' to fool predators. |
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| Method One of Two: Hypnotizing a Chicken |
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| Hold the chicken down on a flat surface. |
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| Hold the chicken with one hand supporting the breast. |
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| Place it down so that its breast is carrying its weight and rests on the ground. |
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| Continue to hold its feet so the grand experiment can continue. |
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| You can place the chicken on its breast instead. |
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| Press gently down on its back, and gently move its legs back if it tries to stand up. |
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| Wiggle your finger. |
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| Hold the bird down gently with one hand. |
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| Put one finger on your other hand just in front of its beak tip, without touching it. |
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| Move the finger backward to about 4 inches (10 cm) away, then back again. |
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| Repeat until the chicken stops moving or squawking. |
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| Let go of its legs. |
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| The chicken should be 'hypnotized' and cease to struggle. |
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| It will lie there for anywhere from 30 seconds to several minutes. |
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| Draw a line in front of its beak instead. |
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| If the chicken wasn't hypnotized, try this alternative. |
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| Using chalk, a stick, or your finger, draw a line on the ground 12 ' (30 cm) long. |
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| Start near the chicken's beak and draw the line slowly outward, in front of its head. |
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| Wake it up by clapping. |
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| Be nice to your feathered friend and let it get back to its business. |
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| Clap your hands or give it a gentle shove until it jumps up and walks away. |
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| Method Two of Two: Reducing Stress in the Chicken |
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| Understand the hypnotic effect. |
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| Researchers call this effect 'tonic immobility'. |
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| 'When a chicken or another animal with this tendency becomes frightened, its heart rate lowers and it stops moving. |
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| This may be an attempt to play dead, discouraging predators that prefer live prey. |
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| Unlike an opossum, the chicken gives an unconvincing act, as it continues to blink and breathe in an obvious way.' |
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| Keep the chicken upright or on its side. |
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| While it's not uncommon to transport a chicken by its feet, this upside-down hold risks breaking the chicken's hip. |
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| Hypnosis techniques that involve laying a chicken on its back may 'succeed' by cutting off its air supply. |
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| This can cause the chicken significant discomfort, leading to fainting or even, rarely, death. |
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| Keep hypnosis short and infrequent. |
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| It's not completely clear how much stress this hypnosis causes. |
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| Even if it does, the chicken shouldn't suffer as long as you let it go soon afterward. |
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| Hours of stress, or regular exposure to stressful situations, can cause serious health problems. |
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| Get your chickens used to humans and novelty. |
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| Even prolonged eye contact seems to have an effect. |
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| Living in stimulating environments with new objects may also help. |
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| Hens raise in battery cages stay 'hypnotized' longer, possibly because of greater fear. |
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| Watch for signs of stress. |
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| Abnormal feathering, constant preening, or delays in egg-laying are all signs of a stressed chicken. |
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| While hypnotizing is unlikely to cause serious harm, any type of stress is more damaging to a chicken in this state. |